When I first step into a new Airbnb rental I notice all the little details. I appreciate the furniture choices. I’m happy there are enough mugs and a coffee maker.
I’ll check out the books on the shelves, and depending on how long I’m there maybe read one. I’ll take advantage of closets, dressers, and cabinets to store and organize my things. I’ll explore the garden.
I may see that there’s only a small fridge, or the towel hook in the bathroom is loose. But after noticing these I don’t spend much time worrying about them.
It’s a rental, after all. It’s not my problem. I’ll be moving on soon.
I find it easy to enjoy the space and everything in it while I’m there, not letting its imperfections get in the way.
It doesn’t matter how long I stay in the rental. Whether it’s 2 nights or 30, I don’t get bogged down in whatever is wrong. It is what it is, and I adapt.
I thought about this the other day while contemplating the beginning of Rumi’s The Guest House.
This being human is a guest house.
Rumi’s poem is about the wisdom of welcoming various emotions, as the proprietor of a guest house welcomes all kinds of guests. It’s warm and insightful.
But it prompted me to think of this other way to apply the “guest house” metaphor to life.
I don’t want to make this a whole post about impermanence, so let’s agree for now that Buddhists are right and impermanence is fundamental to existence.
Ok, so if everything is impermanent, what’s the difference between a short term vacation rental and my home, for instance?
Can I view my home, and all my “possessions” in it, as merely a rental? What if they’re not mine, and I’m just using them for a while?
When I make this mindset shift I notice a meaningful uptick in satisfaction and contentment. The sink that drains slowly bothers me less. I’m not so concerned about the one broken window crank.
In fact I find that I actually do more to improve the experience of living in the home. I more diligently tend to the dishes, the laundry, and the tidying up when I’m not burdened by an endless list of faults that need correcting.
The same goes for paying attention to the people that live in the home with me. I find that I have a lot more energy and attention to share with them when the home is just a place we live now… a shelter… not yet another obligation machine in life full of them.
Freeing up this energy is the whole ballgame. With that lightness and freedom I can tackle the real projects. I can fix the leaking pipe or remodel the bedroom.
Counterintuitively, thinking of my home as a rental helps me care for it like I own it.
Now, apply that to all of life.
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